


Forester

by AscendingDarkness



Series: Vitality-verse Extended [1]
Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Violence, Demons, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Fantasy, Gods, Intersex, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Moral Ambiguity, Mpreg, Multi, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Verse, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Unreliable Narrator, Video Game Mechanics, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 10:41:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27349822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AscendingDarkness/pseuds/AscendingDarkness
Summary: When everyone around you wants you dead, what else could you do but do your best to survive?Usually, a person is either born into a life of fortune or a life of hardship.Eshijan Forester was born into both.You probably think you know how this story goes, but trust me, you don't.
Relationships: Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: Vitality-verse Extended [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1997368
Kudos: 5





	1. The Bastard Son I

**Author's Note:**

> This work takes place in the Vitality Universe, but about 200 years into the future.
> 
> No prior knowledge of the prequel is needed, but it would make it easier to digest some of the information. 
> 
> Forester follows the story of a different omega with a very shitty angsty childhood from Yuliang and Yukio's hometown, Mist Valley.
> 
> Also, if you thought Vitality was a slow burn, you're in for a nightmare because Forester will be glacial in comparison :) 
> 
> Well, I hope you guys enjoy it.
> 
> ~AD

Sunlight streamed through the thick foliage, providing comforting warmth against the chill in the air left over from a winter that had hung past its welcome.

Atop a high branch, with his back pressed against the tree's sturdy trunk, was 13-year-old Eshijan Forester.

Young Eshijan Forester was a frequent presence in the vast forests of Mist Valley. He usually spends hours, from dusk to dawn, in the forests: hours which he would spend running around, hunting or training.

Although the time he spent in the forests was done with joy, there was another reason why such a young omega had preferred to venture into the depths of the wilderness alone.

That's because, for Eshijan, the forest was his refuge.

Eshijan Forester was a scion of the Forester family. The only aristocratic family in Mist Valley. His father was Lord Forester. His mother was the Lord's late-second husband, who was a civilian omega from Linos.

While the facts are simple, the reality widely accepted by the residents of Mist Valley paints a different picture.

-Eshijan Forester was the bastard son of Lord Forester and an omega whore from the capital.

-Lord Forester had been tricked into a marriage by the omega whore, who followed him back to Mist Valley with his bastard son.

-Lady Forester did not know of the marriage nor consent to it.

-For the sake of Lady Forester and the stability of her marriage, the omega whore and his bastard child were better off dead.

The marriage between Lord and Lady Forester was one of convenience arranged between an established aristocratic family on the verge of bankruptcy and a neo-aristocratic family with a desire to increase their standing.

The couple was courteous and maintained a loving image in public, but there was no love lost between them.

Lord Forester's affairs were known and accepted as a necessary evil by the ambitious Lady Forester. She did not care what her husband did as long as Lord Forester's actions did not drag down the Forester name.

It was only after the birth of their first daughter, Adilah, that Lady Forester began to take issue with their arrangement.

Lady Forester realized that she did not want her daughter to grow up with an adulterous and absentee father.

This desire wasn't something that occurred to her at once, but one built up over time, as her husband increasingly spent more time in the capital and less time watching over their daughter's growth. Then, three years later, things came to ahead. She received a devastating Net Transmission from her husband.

In the Transmission, Lord Forester informed her that he had fallen in love with a civilian omega of no standing in the capital and wished to take him as the second husband. An action made possible by the Conditional Polygamy Clause of the Furian constitution. Which states; In the situation where the first spouse of a Lord is a woman, it is within a Lord's right to take a second spouse under the condition that they are an omega.

Lady Forester had not taken the news well. For all she tolerated her husband's infidelity, a second marriage was unacceptable!

Tales of infidelity could be covered up from the public, but there was no hiding a marriage.

What would people say about her?

What would people say about her daughter?

How would all this gossip affect her daughter's future? Her education? Her prospects?

Those had been the thoughts running through her mind when she firmly rejected her husband that night.

Who would have thought that Lord Forester would have gone through the marriage regardless?

Who would have thought Lord Forester would have stayed a year longer in the capital?

Who would have thought it would be with a baby that Lord Forester would return to Mist Valley?

Lady Forester had refused to acknowledge the marriage and treated the new addition to the household with coldness and cruelty. An example followed by the estate servants, and once the increasingly warped and twisted version of the tale spread into town, the townspeople followed it as well. They felt it was their obligation to form a united front against the foreign threat to their town's hierarchy.

Though this is all interesting, this isn't what the story is about.

This story isn't about Lord Forester, Lady Forester, the late second husband or the Mist Valley residents.

This story is about Eshijan Forester, the baby who had been unfortunately fortunate enough to be born.

This is his story.


	2. The Bastard Son II

The nation of Fiore is composed of citizens that descend from four main ethnicities.

The Nordish originate from Norden, the northern region.

They are pale-skinned and usually either had blond or dark brown hair. They also usually inherit green, blue or, in rare cases, purple eyes. The Nordish are stereotypically tall due to their genetics and diet. They are the most populous ethnicity in Medina, the central region of Fiore, known as the melting pot of Fiore since all four ethnicities mix here. One-third of all Furian Chancellors have been of Nordish origin.

The Kulonians originate from Kulon, the western region.

Kulonians are one of the two dark-skinned ethnicities of Fiore. They have unique curly textured hair that's usually worn in various hairstyles unique to their culture. People of this ethnicity are typically born with red, gold or red-gold heterochromatic eyes. The Kulonians are a culture divided by tribes that run similar to businesses. Each tribe has its own territory and an army of loyal families under their command, but they each specialize in different industries. Another thing unique to them is their communication manner, a combination of common dialect and hand signs.

The Estish originate from Estin, the eastern region.

The Estish are the most homogenous and populous ethnicity of Fiore. The vast majority of them genetically inherit straight black hair, slanted amber eyes and porcelain skin. The Estish also have a dialect unique to them; it does not use hand signs, but it uses many whistles and clicks. Estin is a constitutional monarchy with an imperial family that had lasted from a time before Fiore's formation when the regions were independent nations.

The Sundanese originate from Sundan, the southern region of Fiore.

The Sundanese are also a dark-skinned ethnicity. The majority of the Sundanese people have straight red hair and grey or dark brown eyes. The region is the most isolated due to the Great Barrier Mountain range that separates it from the rest of Fiore. Most of Sundan's wealth comes from agriculture and the mining of precious metals and minerals. The Sundanese have the longest life expectancy, the highest average income and the lowest unemployment rate. The Sundanese are considered the happiest people in Fiore.

Eshijan was an individual of mixed ethnicity. His father was Sundanese, and his mother was a Medinian of Nordish descent. Eshijan looked Sundanese for the most part, but his Nordish heritage was also quite visible.

Eshijan had curly red hair, a shade darker than the typical bright red found in Mist Valley. The colour of dried blood, some of the more morbid residents would say.

He was dark-skinned, but his skin was a shade lighter, more caramel than cinnamon brown. 

Then came the colour of his eyes.

The trait that truly marked him as an outsider.

Bright purple eyes, identical to his mother's.

By Furian standards, Eshijan's unique appearance marks him as an exotic beauty, but for someone with his level of infamy, that beauty was a curse.

Let's go back a year.

Eshijan was twelve then, and he was only beginning to show signs of maturing. He hadn't quite hit his growth spurt yet, but he was getting there. His voice had changed slightly. Nothing drastic, but there was a slightly more scratchy quality to it. While Omegas don't develop voices as deep as the average man's, their voices do deepen to a certain extent during puberty.

Then there were his scent glands.

In ancient times, scent glands of an omega were a feature that secretes pheromones that intensify during their fertile period, more commonly known as the Heat, to attract a mate. Pheromones are identified by their sweet, pleasant smell and unique to each omega.

So no two omegas smell the same.

Modern-day humans aren't psychologically affected by the pheromones anymore, but they are still physiologically affected.

In contemporary society, the first release of an omega's pheromones was the equivalent of a woman's first period, a sign of sexual maturity.

At twelve, Eshijan's scent glands were only beginning to secrete these unique pheromones in the form of a faint, sweet, vanilla-esque scent.

These were all changes that our young omega Eshijan was oblivious to but were quietly noticed by the townspeople, who tend to keep a very close eye on him.

Eshijan, as the pariah of Mist Valley, was mostly just the subject of gossip and subtle snubs, and the townsfolk very rarely approached him.

So, when men suddenly began approaching him on his trips back through town, Eshijan had been wary, but he still maintained his usual friendly smile and one-word answers. He had no desire to add to the animosity they held for him if he could help it.

One of them even offered to take him 'real hunting' since he seemed to love spending so much time in the woods.

Eshijan turned the man down as politely as he could. "Thank you, sir, but that will not be necessary. I already have a mentor to instruct me."

The man hadn't been pleased to hear that because he growled and took a menacing step forward. "Who? Someone already approached you, and you agreed? What the fuck, you little bitch! You dare lead me on when you've already got someone fucking you on the side, slut! I tried being nice to you too!"

He tried to grab Eshijan, but Eshijan reflexively dodged and backed away. He was still smiling, but his purple eyes narrowed with a flash of understanding flickering through them. 

The moment Eshijan's pheromones had begun to secrete, his mentor, Hunter, had taken pointed it out and taken time from their training to explain to give him The Talk. Eshijan just hadn't been bright enough to put two and two together until it seemed to smack him right in the face. Not that he could be blamed. Eshijan had assumed touching him would be the last thing a resident of Mist Valley would do to him from experience. 

Eshijan had two options here. The correct option would probably be to run, but the option Hunter would fully endorse would be for him to beat his opponent into submission.

For all Eshijan was mature for his age, he was an omega who had grown up surrounded by human cruelty and developed a mean streak to match it. 

Eshijan ducked another grab and pulled his dagger out of its boot-sheathe. Then the next time his opponent came within range, he jumped up and plunged the dagger into the man's shoulder using the momentum from his jump. He pulled. Slicing the flesh across the man's chest with some effort. 

The man screamed and fell to his knees.

Eshijan grinned.

He drew his dagger arm back and punched the man in the face with his dominant right hand before the man could regain his senses.

Eshijan got in a solid four hits before the man reached out to swipe at him.

It was weak, and Eshijan easily sidestepped. He would have loved to stick around and play with his would-be-assaulter a bit more, but seeing that it was getting dark, it was best he cut this short. Eshijan didn't need anyone tattling to Lord Forester that he had been staying out past curfew again. He doubted his body could bear getting whipped again so soon.

Taking advantage of the man's collapsed form, Eshijan gave the man a solid kick between the legs and watched the man roll around in the dirt like the worm he was.

"As I said before, I already have a mentor. And, I think it would benefit us both if this stayed our secret, yes? You tell no one about today, and no one else finds out about what an absolute pervert you are, Shan Kuray. Honestly, going after 12-year-old children?" he tutted, "You should be ashamed, you pedophile."

The last comment had the older man raised his head to glare at him with hate-filled eyes. "There's nothing childish about you, you purple-eyed, demonic slut!"

Eshijan just continued to smile, "Really now. If that's what I am, what does that make you? Well, I have to get going now. I can't leave my father waiting."

Now that had the man paling.

People liked to forget that Eshijan, despite his infamy, was the son of an aristocrat. One that openly doted on him.

With his part said, Eshijan sheathed his bloody dagger and went along his merry way, whistling a jaunty tune. 

Shan Kuray was not the last man to corner him, but he couldn't afford to get as violent with the rest as he could the first since they all had more influence and reputation in town. So, he usually just hit them where it hurt and ran away.

No, the last man that cornered him was someone closer to home. 

Laksh Perera was a new member of the estate staff, and Eshijan always seemed to run into him in the short time he spent at the manor. Laksh was twenty years old, and many of the female servants and even Adilah fancied him since Laksh had a handsome face and a ripped body.

Eshijan, of course, didn't know or care about the servants in the manor, except for the very few that had been around since he was born. He had too many bad experiences with new servants, and he never stuck around long enough in the estate to warrant getting to know anymore. 

The manor's western wing, where Eshijan's rooms were located, was out of bounds to all estate staff except for the senior servants like Anshu. Lord Forester had to put the rule into place after one too many servants tried to sneak into the rooms to kill the omega.

Again, not something Eshijan was particularly aware of since he was out of the manor a lot, and the times he stayed, he always made sure to lock all the doors and windows of any areas that he occupied. 

Locking down any room he stayed in was a habit Eshijan carried from his younger days when his mother was alive. They used to do it together. His mother had turned it into a game to see who could lock down more of the room the fastest. Eshijan hadn't won a single time. His mother had been too immature and too competitive a person to let him, but he always got lots of hugs and kisses from his mother afterwards to make up for it.

That was nice and all, but let's get back to our newest problem; Laksh Perera.

So, Laksh was actually from Sundan's regional capital Sario. He ended up in Mist Valley because one of his distant relatives worked in one of the nearby farms and had a contact within the estate who could get him a job there. He didn't really have a hatred for Eshijan, but he did see an easy target for his advances.

An isolated individual who was probably desperate for even a single scrap of positive affection.

Laksh, just like the rest of the world, had a strong lust for omega, but finding an unclaimed and unprotected omega in the city was like looking for a needle in a haystack. So, to see such a defenceless, beautiful omega, even if he was a little on the young side, was a siren's call Laksh dived into headfirst. He tried and tried and tried to make sure their paths crossed with what little time Eshijan spent in the Forester estate, but the omega turned out to be a lot slipperier than expected.

Honestly, Laksh didn't need an omega to get his dick wet; there were more than enough offers from pretty much all the females in his vicinity. He could probably even make the heiress bend over if he tried hard enough, but what he wanted was that fucking omega, and he wanted him now.

In Laksh's impatience and desperation, he tossed aside his responsibilities to wait for Eshijan at the edge of town where he usually arrived from, and the moment the omega showed up, Laksh had the brat pinned against a tree with his nose pressed into Eshijan's scent gland, taking deep lungfuls of that sweet omega scent.

Eshijan had been petrified from the shock and caught completely off guard.

Laksh reached up and grabbed the omega's beautiful curly hair, just like in his fantasies and began to tell the omega all the dirty things he would do to him.

Eshijan's ears were ringing. 'Beautiful hair', 'Heat' and 'fuck a baby into you' began playing in his mind on repeat.

Then Eshijan felt the wetness of a tongue on his skin and the solid threat of teeth against his gland.

He saw red.

Eshijan immediately kneed his newest attacker in the groin. Then while the man was distracted, he grabbed a rock on the floor and bashed it on his assaulter's skull until he fell unconscious.

He didn't stop there.

He grabbed the man by his hair and used every ounce of the strength he built up during his training to begin dragging him.

Eshijan was still smiling, but on the inside, he was fucking livid.

He was running on pure adrenaline, so the strain and exhaustion of his body as he dragged a grown man down a paved road was negligible.

He didn't stop until he reached Town Square, where a deathly silence spread at his arrival.

Laksh's head dropped onto the pavement with a deafening crack.

"This better be the last of you," he said with a chilling smile on his face.

My poor baby-I mean, now, of course, no one exactly knew what had been going on, so rumours of the omega bastard's blood-thirst spread like wildfire, but his words did inadvertently reach the ears of his target audience as well.

And that, my friends, is why beauty is a curse.


	3. Hunter I

No matter how much Eshijan tried to tell himself he was fine, everything he had experienced that year had left him pretty deeply affected.

Eshijan wasn't exactly certain how things had escalated to such a point, but the evidence left on the sink was pretty damning.

The mirror fogged up from his breath, and Eshijan couldn't see very well through tears in his eyes, but it was finally gone.

His 'beautiful curls' were finally gone.

He was still smiling, but Eshijan couldn't lie to himself anymore.

He was not fine.

No one knew what had really gone down between Laksh and Eshijan to end in such a gruesome way, but the natural assumption was that Laksh was just another servant doing the dirty work for Lady Forester. Lady Forester's decision to allow Laksh to continue working at the estate afterwards only solidified this assumption. Lady Forester was only ever merciful to people loyal to her.

That wasn't actually the case. While it could be viewed as an 'enemy of the enemy is my friend' situation, in reality, Lady Forester just hadn't wanted to lose the eye candy.

No matter how much of an ice-cold bitch she was, Lady Forester was still a woman with desires.

Eshijan didn't run into Laksh again, but he could feel the older man's hateful gaze on him from time to time. Eshijan always carried his dagger, but knowing that the disgusting man was still around had him, he had taken to horizontal carrying it instead of sheathing it in his knee-high leather boots. 

Eshijan looked at his shiny bald head in the mirror once more and sighed happily.

He looked hideous, and it was wonderful!

If it was his pheromones and beauty that drew him such unwanted advances, wouldn't such a problem be resolved if he could make himself as unappealing as possible?

He had done his research, done his shopping, and he continued to shave his head bald.

He stopped wearing the expensive quality clothes Lord Forester proved him with and started wearing old clothes that felt comfortable instead.

The only way to cover a base scent was to mask it with odours stronger and more overwhelming than it. This was an easy fix. He stopped bothering to wash up after his hunts and started using scent-cancelling soaps the few times a week that he did bother to shower.

Now no one could stand being too close to him due to the strong stench of cooked meat and blood clinging to his body. 

With his actions, not only did Eshijan manage to solve the problem of unwanted sexual advances, but he also solved the problem of future advances as well! 

Hunter hadn't been in Mist Valley for the entire duration of these life-altering events, so to say that the older omega had been surprised by the changes Eshijan had undergone in the months that he had been away was an understatement. The omega hadn't said anything, but Hunter had just started at Eshijan for a good long while until Eshijan succumbed to the pressure and spilled everything.

Hunter had not been happy with the situation or Eshijan's reaction to it. 

So two things happened afterwards. First, Laksh suddenly had a family emergency that required him to quit his job and move back to Sario with no plans of ever returning. Second, Hunter extended his stay in Mist Valley for a month to literally smack the sense right back into Eshijan's thick skull using his special brand of Training From Hell.

Eshijan swore he lost a limb or two somewhere in the middle of it, but his memories of the time were a little hazy, and his limbs were very much attached and fully functioning by the end of it, so he thought he might have just hallucinated it.

He hadn't.

Eshijan really had lost an arm and a leg at one point in their training, but our Hunter is an omega of many talents.

Okay, let's wrap this part up and talk about more interesting things.

The Training From Hell had managed to physically and mentally beef Eshijan up, but nothing else had really changed other than that.

Well, maybe not so much nothing had changed, but more like something had settled, because even a year later, Eshijan continues to maintain a shitty dress style, shiny bald head and the stench of dried blood and cooked meat.

Now, let me tell you a bit about Hunter because this guy is pretty damn cool.

Hunter's actual name is not actually Hunter. It's just an alias he uses whenever he decides to go incognito.

If his name isn't Hunter, then what is it, you might ask.

That, my friends, is something you'll find out at a later date.

I know, I've been really generous with all the information so far. So you're probably wondering what all the secrecy is about. Well, the secrecy is more for my darling Eshijan's sake than yours. There's just so much he doesn't know yet. So much he has to learn and see and experience. It just doesn't feel right to give you access to something Eshijan deserves to learn first.

So, I hope you will be patient with me.

Now, where was I... right. Hunter.

So, Eshijan and Hunter's paths crossed by pure chance.

One delirious from injury and the other running away from a life society forced on him.

From this description alone, you might think you know what had happened, but think again sucker!

Eshijan was found by Hunter, collapsed in the middle of the forest, running a high fever and delirious from pain caused by the bleeding, festering wounds that covered his back.

For Hunter, the decision to take here was pretty obvious.

So, he stuck around and did his duty of care.

He cleaned the injuries, Healed the back, clothed and fed the omega until he completely recovered.

Hunter hadn't visited Mist Valley in a long time, so visiting a bar to catch up on everything he had missed out on was the first thing he did once he was sure he could leave the omega to rest without supervision. Not that he left the child defenceless, of course. Hunter made sure to set up a protective barrier on the cave he had them camp out in before he left. He was hoping that he'd also be able to find out who the child was and how he had been left in such a state as well.

If there was one thing that never changed about this town, it was how everyone seemed to know about everyone else's business. No secret ever stayed secret in Mist Valley. 

It had been a while, so most people didn't recognize Hunter and eyed him warily due to his foreign ethnic appearance. Except for Hunter's dark skin and fuller features, every other trait he possessed was Estish.

Hunter never understood how in such a progressive world, the people of this town always seemed to find new reasons to show hostility to people of other ethnicities.

Thankfully, at least the bar owner was someone familiar. The grandson of the man who used to run this place from back when Hunter lived here. A loyal family who made sure that Hunter always had a place that remembered and welcomed him whenever he returned.

"Hunter!" the young man working the bar counter greeted with clear delight. Although the bar owner could be described as young, Lani de Silva was a man in his mid-forties who didn't look a day over twenty. "It's been far too long since your last visit, my friend! Come, take a seat, first few drinks on the house!"

Hunter did as he was told with an amused huff, "That won't be necessary, Lani. I came prepared to pay your outrageous prices. How's everyone been doing? It seems like a lot has changed here since I last saw it."

The man slid a glass filled to the brim with an amber liquid that brought a sparkle to Hunter's eyes. Hunter was quick to grab the glass and downed it with a satisfied groan.

Now, this was something he hadn't had in a very long time.

"Fuck, I forgot how good this tasted." Not being able to get drunk anymore was definitely for the best, considering how he used to forget his limits when he got his hands on this drink in his younger days. 

"I never understood your obsession with that drink," Lani said, with a shake of his head, but he exchanged the glass with another that Hunter chose to savour at a much slower pace. "This was the first drink I was taught to make, you know. Never realize why, considering how unpopular it is, but then you suddenly barged in out of nowhere and wiped out our entire stock of it! You have terrible taste, you know."

"Fuck off! Now give me the deets, brat. I know something is going on in this goddamn town. Either you tell me what it is, or I start going around hurting people to get my answers."

Lani just scrunched his nose, "No one says deets anymore, old man. Even my generation didn't use that when we were kids." Hunter's only response was a deepened scowl. "Okay, okay, I'll tell you. No need to go scaring customers."

This was how Hunter found out about the situation at the Forester Estate and the bastard omega son. Afterwards, he spent a few more hours at the bar catching up about everything else going on in town and with the de Silva family, but Hunter was distracted. His thoughts just kept circling back to the omega he had found in the woods.

Curly red hair, purple eyes. It was pretty obvious who the boy was. The question was, what was Hunter going to do about it?

Should he even do something about it?

These were the questions that plagued his mind as he went back to his little cave hideout and checked over the peacefully sleeping omega again. The child still had a slight fever, but that would pass in a few days. So if he really wanted to, Hunter could just take the omega to the Forester Estate and dust his hands of the situation right now. He had already gone above and beyond the minimum requirement for duty of care, but a look at the healing scars on the child's back made him hesitate. 

Hunter thought about the situation and weighed his options for the next few days while caring for the child.

At the point the young omega finally regained consciousness, Hunter could no longer deny that the decision had already been made.

Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime, was how the saying went, right?

So instead of giving the omega a fish that he probably wouldn't even know what to do with, Hunter decided to take the child under his wing.

Hunter's decision probably had a lot to do with how he felt like he was looking back at his younger self whenever he thought about Eshijan and the omega's helpless situation, but that only lasted until he got to know the younger omega.

Eshijan was nothing like his childhood self.

Hunter, in his younger years, had just been filled with rage and bitterness. He was infamous for his temper and violent tendencies. He was quick to anger and even quicker to punch. A habit that often ended up leading him into even more trouble.

Eshijan was different. The boy was soft and gentle. Kind where Hunter had been cruel. Forgiving where Hunter had been contemptuous. Eshijan never let the injustices of his life dim his smile for even a moment.

Eshijan was everything that Hunter considered precious in this world.

Unfortunately, Hunter was a busy man. The time he spent at Mist Valley was very limited, but he made the most of it. He planned to train Eshijan first to be self-reliant. Then he would train Eshijan in the basics of combat. Finally, after Eshijan turns 13, Hunter would take him away from Mist Valley.

From the first time he held a dagger to his first kill, Hunter was there to guide Eshijan every step of the way.

First by hand, then slowly, as Eshijan began to find his balance, Hunter began to step away to watch his son-I mean-watch his student progress without his intervention.

Fortunately, Eshijan was a quick and diligent student, so there hadn't been much intervention required to begin with, but it still brought warmth to Hunter's heart to see his-son-I mean student progress so well.

Most people underestimated the level of talent and skill hunting truly required.

They ignorantly assume that as long as they could spot prey and aim a gun, that was all it took.

They were wrong.

Hunter taught Eshijan hunting like it was an art form.

An art form that requires strict discipline and training.

An art form that requires the artist to be aware of and control every aspect of their body. The way you walk, the speed you move, the way you breathe, the rate of your heart, the temperature of your body and all five senses of the body; sight, sound, smell, taste, touch.

"It's all in the subtleties, Eshijan. You can leave things up to things like chance and fate, but I prefer certainty. Don't you? Also, if you perfect these skills, you might be the one to achieve every hunter's dream. the Hundred Percent Success Rate."

Honestly, the Hundred Percent Success Rate thing was bullshit.

Something Hunter had just made it up so that Eshijan would stop with the damn questions and get with the program. He didn't have all day to train the brat, and he wanted to get through all the drills he had planned for him before he left.

How would he have known that the words he had flippantly said to a young impressionable child could have such drastic consequences in the future?


	4. Heavenly Water Elemental I

The Heavenly Alliance is an apolitical independent organization composed of Spiritually trained humans that protect Fiore from demonic threats. The Alliance, which is led by the Council of 11 Saints, mainly rose to prominence in the last century due to the increased frequency of demonic attacks worldwide.

Saints are humans that have Ascended to immortality. Each Saint is denoted by a unique Title corresponding to their talents or achievements.

The Saints are responsible for recruiting and training spiritually gifted humans, known as Apprentices. Becoming an Apprentice is considered an honour for Furians and comes with many benefits like power, wealth and prestige. It is the dream of every 12-16-year-old to be scouted and recruited by a Saint, and Eshijan is no different. He had heard so many stories about the members of the Heavenly Alliance from his late mother.

The older omega had been a bit of a Heavenly Alliance fanboy. He had a Netscreen filled with data sheets that profiled all the Saints and famous Apprentices.

His mother claimed to love all of them equally, but it was obvious that he had a soft spot a mile wide for Saint Yuliang, the Heavenly Healer. The first and only omega Saint to Ascend.

Eshijan had seen all of his mother's recordings and holo-posters of Saint Yuliang. Still, he didn't see what the big deal was, considering that Saint Yuliang's face and body were always covered up and how Healing seemed to be his only ability.

Not that Healing people was a bad ability, but it was pretty useless in solo combat.

Eshijan had gotten slapped when he pointed it out to his mother. Apparently, Saint Yuliang's attraction was the mystery.

Was the omega beautiful or ugly?

Was he strong or weak?

Was Healing truly his only ability, or was it the only ability he bothered to show?

Eshijan still didn't get it, so his mother started showing him all the data, recordings, and articles he had collected, which proved Saint Yuliang was actually the dark horse of the Heavenly Alliance. Eshijan's mother just kept doing this until Eshijan finally saw the light and accepted how absolutely amazing their lord and saviour Saint Yuliang was.

So much for loving everyone equally...

Anyway, let me tell you the reason we started with all this.

The Heavenly Water Elemental, Saint Quinn, is coming to Mist Valley this evening!

And you know what's even more exciting?

She's going to be stopping by at the Forester Estate!

This, boys and girls, is what we have been waiting for!

About damn time too!

My dear Eshijan's been rotting in this damn town for far too long!

Let's get back to business.

Lot's to say; lot's to do.

So, Eshijan knew that today was the day that the Saint would be arriving, but instead of taking the time to get ready, our favourite idiot thought that it was a good idea to spend the entire morning hunting.

Honestly, he should have known better than to do that on such an important day!

It was around one in the afternoon when he came back, and at that time, the entire estate was in an uproar trying to finish the last-minute cleaning, cooking and gardening.

Eshijan was highly amused by it all because the last time he had seen the estate so busy had been at his mother's funeral.

Eshijan didn't want to track dirt all over their hard work, so he took a detour and entered through one of the manor's side entrances. He had only managed to get a few steps in before his arm was taken hostage and dragged down the hall in a hurry.

"Where in the heavens have you been, brat! I've been looking for you all morning!" It was Anshu, one of the estate's senior servants. She turned over her shoulder to get a good look at him before turning back with a huff, "You were playing in the forest again, weren't you? Oh, heaven's above, I think we must have dropped you on your head one too many times! Why else would you decide that it was a good idea to play in the dirt! You idiot!"

Eshijan could only try to keep up and not trip as he was dragged down the halls towards the western wing, where his rooms were. When they reached it, the doors were swung open, and he was practically tossed inside. For a normal human woman in her mid-fifties, Anshu was pretty damn strong.

"Now go take a goddamn proper shower! And I'm warning you, if you don't come out smelling like roses, I swear I'll drag you inside and scrub you from head to toe, myself!"

Eshijan responded with a short laugh and a cheeky, "Yes ma'am" before he scrambled to close the bathroom door behind him. A wise decision, considering the loud bang on the other side of the door.

While Eshijan was busy in the shower, Anshu was just as busy trying to find an outfit that the child wouldn't look completely ridiculous in. It was a difficult task when she had to take that shiny bald head of his into account.

"What was that omega thinking! Who the hell just decided to randomly shave their head at 12? Is this another one of those ridiculous teenage fads? Ridiculous, truly ridiculous!" 

Eshijan Forester was the bane of Anshu Sharma's existence since he arrived at the Forster Estate. She knew there was something wrong with the omega since the first she held him. No normal baby ever smiled that much, and no normal teenager ever smiled that much either! Especially not when everyone around you treated you like shit all your life!

It was probably all that Nordish blood in him. Anshu always thought those northerners were a weird bunch.

If only the omega's mother were here to see him, Anshu was sure the man would be able to smack some sense into him.

The older woman's thoughts came to a screeching halt.

Right.

The boy's mother was dead.

Anshu had been a part of the estate for about 35 years now, and as all servants of aristocrats usually did, she too had one too many sordid tales to tell.

If the Lord and Lady Forester were apostles: pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth, these were their creeds.

In the deadly game of cat and mouse, the Forester family had taken to playing, one innocent life was already lost, and now the reaper awaited the second.

Anshu was probably just as bad for accommodating this twisted game, but what choice did she have? She had a family; five children and a sick husband, whose lives depended on her paycheque. For someone as small and insignificant as her, she could do nothing but watch from the sidelines and regret.

With a shake of her head and a sigh, Anshu got back to the task at hand. There was no point in thinking about this now.

Not when the boy was still alive and well.

Maybe, if he were lucky, Lady Forester would have mercy and just let him live.

Well, that was kind of sad.

A new perspective to consider.

Maybe not all the people in the estate wish to see the young omega dead?

Well, who knows.

For all Anshu thought herself insignificant, she was still the only servant Lord Forester trusted with the care of his only omega son. That had to count for something.

Anyway, let's move on.

So, Eshijan eventually comes out of the shower, in his shining bald glory and dresses in the purple robes that Anshu had left out for him before she had to leave to attend her other duties.

Eshijan couldn't help but scrutinize his reflection in the massive floor-length mirror on the wall opposite his closet.

He had never really regretted shaving his head before, but looking at himself now, he couldn't help but reconsider it.

He looked more ready to preach sermons than defeat demons.

Hopefully, Saint Quinn wasn't the judgemental type.

Eshijan brought his hands up and smacked his cheeks a couple of times.

"Think positive," he ordered himself.

Self-doubts and negative thoughts were what lead his own mother to his death; he would not fall into that same trap!

He was okay.

How he looked didn't matter. As long as he was Spiritually gifted, there was no reason for Saint Quinn to reject him.


	5. Heavenly Water Elemental II

Saint Quinn was expected to arrive at around three in the afternoon. It was still around 1:30, but Eshijan couldn't stay in his room for too long without feeling like the walls were closing in on him, so he decided to head down a bit early to the manor's front foyer.

It seemed that he wasn't the only one feeling a little antsy.

Except for the downturn of their eyes and maybe the shape of their noses, nothing else indicated the relation between Eshijan and Adilah Forester.

Adilah Forester had inherited most of her features from her father. She was practically his female version. It was one of the very few reasons that Eshijan didn't feel like running away, screaming every time he saw her.

Eshijan's mother had conditioned him from a very young age to fear anything and everything to do with his father's wife. He slightly flinched when Adilah's voice and behaviour took a Lady Forester-like tone, but Eshijan was still able to carry a civil conversation with her for the most part.

Adilah had narrow grey eyes, a small snub nose and a pair of thin, rouged lips. She was a little on the overweight side, but it didn't detract from her appearance. The additional weight only softened her prominent sharp features and made her look more approachable. 

Unfortunately, being a 16-year-old in the middle of puberty had taken its toll on her since her skin was spotted with fresh acne and had an oiliness to it that not even the facial cleansers she had started using could get rid of.

She did look good today, though, dressed in a brand new Yuki-O dress. A dark green long-sleeved dress that reaches lower than her knees, with a black silk sash around the waist tied off to the side in a simple bow. She had tastefully accessorized with a small silver pendant and matching silver earrings.

"You look like a goddamn plum," she said in lieu of a greeting, crossing her arms over her developing chest.

Real charmer, this one.

Eshijan grinned and moved to stand beside her, "A plum I may be, but at least an attractive plum am I not?"

Adilah gave him a look of disgust, "What the hell? Did someone give you something weird to drink again, Eshijan?"

Eshijan shook his head. "Nope." He clasped his hands behind his back and peered at the large ornate doors of the manor entrance.

Time to change the subject. "What do you think she's like?"

"Who? Saint Quinn?"

"Mhm," Eshijan nodded while rocking back onto his heels. "Do you think she's friendly?"

Adilah scoffed, "How would I know that. This is the first time I'm meeting her too, moron."

Eshijan's relationship with his half-sister was a convoluted and confusing thing.

While Adilah didn't actively go out of her way to antagonize him, she didn't exactly do anything to make his life easier either. For example, Adilah used to push Eshijan down the grand staircase, the ones right behind them, when they were younger.

She had seen the servants tripping and shoving Eshijan whenever they passed him and had thought it was a game. A game to see who could make Eshijan fall down the hardest.

Eshijan had just left Lord's Forester's study after his latest session with the barbed whip. For skipping his lessons this time, but who could blame him? His last tutor tried to strangle him with his tie and gouge his eyes out with a pen.

A pen of all things!

Who even used pens anymore?

He had been training with Hunter for only about a year at this point, so his perception level wasn't very high at this point. Also, an attack from behind was the last thing he expected because while the servants were cruel, they had this weird honour thing going on, where they held off their attacks on the days Eshijan got punished by his father.

The injured and unprepared Eshijan was an easy target for 11-year-old Adilah. All it took was a kick to the back of the knees, and down he went.

Eshijan was the most fortunate unfortunate soul ever to exist.

No one was quite sure how he had survived that fall, and his recovery was nothing short of a miracle.

Well, some say miracle, but I say evolution!

The human body has the potential for three types of Energy.

Spiritual Energy, Natural Energy and Divine Energy.

Spiritual Energy is considered the 'energy of power'. It's the only type of energy that can be drawn out of the body and manipulated in various ways. Like, elemental formation, Healing and Strengthening. All humans have Spiritual Energy, but the amount you are born with is dependent on genetics and luck.

Natural Energy is the 'energy of health'. This is an intangible and immeasurable energy that builds up over a human's lifetime. It functions kind of like the body's immune system. The more damage the body sustains and recovers from, the faster the body will recover from the damage of a similar extent in the future. The passive increase of Natural Energy is also linked to the build-up of Spiritual Energy. This is how Spiritually talented, non-combatant humans like Lord and Lady Forester can slow their ageing.

Divine Energy is the 'energy of life'. The normal human soul occupies the body, but it is not tethered to it. It is the lack of a tether that makes humans mortal. Like Natural Energy, Divine Energy is intangible and immeasurable, but it functions kind of like a string tied to a helium balloon that prevents it from flying away. The higher the level of Divine Energy, the stronger the tether of the soul. The stronger the tether, the lower the likelihood of death. Unlike Spiritual Energy and Natural Energy, Divine Energy is either something you have or you don't. There is no in-between. The only humans confirmed to have Divine Energy are the Saints.

Now, I think it should be obvious by now that Eshijan has been through some shit.

Both at home and during his training with Hunter.

So, Eshijan's Natural Energy levels are probably way higher than the average human's should be at this age.

This is why he survives and completely recovers even after taking such a massive tumble.

Multiple times.

No one would dare tell the heiress to stop, and no one was going to report her either, so Adilah just continued her game until she outgrew it.

The thing is, there's nothing in the Forester estate that happens without Lady Forester's knowledge. She knew exactly what her daughter had been up to and turned a blind eye to it.

Kids will be kids, after all.

Who was she to get in the way of their fun?

Okay, that got way out of hand; let's get back to the present, where Eshijan and Adilah are waiting in front of the stairs that she used to push him down.

It's okay; Eshijan doesn't hold her past actions against her.

Out of all the attempts to kill him, Adilah's were probably the least malicious.

"She's the fifth Saint to Ascend, right?"

Adilah nods, "Yeah. She's also the Saint that recruits the most apprentices. She probably isn't very picky, as long as you have some level of Spiritual Talent."

Eshijan laughs, "Looks like I have some hope of getting picked, then."

His half-sister gave him a critical once over. "Not looking like that, you won't."

Eshijan might be smiling on the outside, but he was crying on the inside.

Was he really that ugly?


End file.
